The class of polymers of carbon monoxide and olefin(s) has been known for some time. Brubaker, U.S. Pat. No. 2,495,286, produced such polymers of relatively low carbon monoxide content in the presence of free radical initiators, e.g., peroxy compounds. U.K. 1,081,304 produced similar polymers of higher carbon monoxide content in the presence of trialkylphosphine complexes of palladium compounds as catalyst. Nozaki extended the reaction to produce linear alternating polymers in the presence of arylphosphine complexes of palladium moieties and certain inert solvents. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,694,412.
More recently, the class of linear alternating polymers of carbon monoxide and at least one ethylenically unsaturated hydrocarbon has become of greater interest in part because of the greater availability of the polymers. The production of such polymers, now known as polyketones or polyketone polymers, has more recently been disclosed by a number of published European Patent Applications including 121,965, 181,014, 213,671 and 257,663. The processes generally involve the use of a catalyst composition formed from a compound of palladium cobalt or nickel, the anion of a non-hydrohalogenic acid having a pKa below 2 and a bidentate aromatic ligand of phosphorus, arsenic or antimony. The scope of the polymerization process is extensive but the generally preferred catalyst compositions for the recent processes are formed from compounds of palladium, particularly palladium alkanoates such as palladium acetates, anions of acids such as trifluoroacetic acid or p-toluenesulfonic acid and bidentate ligands of phosphorus such as 1,3-bis(diphenylphosphino)propane and 1,3-bis[di(2-methoxyphenyl)phosphino]propane.
The process of production of the linear alternating polymers according to such processes gives a good yield of polyketone polymer product having desirable properties, particularly in the presence of the methoxyphenyl-containing bidentate ligand. However, such ligands are often difficult to prepare and are expensive. It has been proposed to employ tertiary monophosphines, which are more economical, as precursors of the catalyst compositions utilized in the production of carbon monoxide/olefin polymers. The above U.K. 1,081,304 utilizes a catalyst composition formed from palladium dichloride and a trialkylphosphine. The above Nozaki patent uses a catalyst composition formed from palladium dichloride and a triarylphosphine. In copending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 135,427, filed Dec. 21, 1987, U.S. Pat. No. 4,820,802 there is disclosed a catalyst composition formed from palladium dichloride, certain strong acids and an ortho-substituted triarylphosphine. Although such processes do produce the described polymer product, it would be of advantage to provide catalyst compositions of higher catalytic activity formed from, inter alia, a tertiary monophosphine ligand.